Forty million people are estimated to suffer from sciatica. However, I believe that what causes the condition is often misconceived. In my experience, I have found that the cause is often the result of a muscle called the piriformis impinging on the sciatic nerve in the gluteal region or buttocks. Prevention of the piriformis training will prevent it from impinging on the sciatic nerve creating sciatica.
Sciatica describes the idea that the sciatic nerve is creating excessive signaling which can include pain, tingling or numbness. The sciatic nerve runs from the gluteal region to the back of the knee. So if you accept the idea that sciatica is some type of irritation of the sciatic nerve, the cause must be found somewhere between the gluteal region and the back of the knee.
I believe it is a common misconception that the cause is a herniated disc impinging on a nerve root in the lower back region. Since the sciatic nerve is made up of nerve roots, this can cause the same symptoms as if the sciatic nerve itself were being affected. This is where I take issue. If a nerve root is being impinged by a herniated disc, a symptom is created that has no similarity to the symptoms associated with sciatica. The symptoms associated with sciatica usually begin in the gluteal region and go down the back or side of the leg, many times to the foot. The symptoms of a nerve root impingement are experienced at the inner shin or the outer shin. Clearly the symptoms of sciatica and a nerve root impingement are completely different.
To reaffirm my position, a physician in California created a diagnostic test called the MRN, or magnetic resonance neurography. This is like an enhanced MRI. He confirmed that in 95 percent of all cases of sciatica, the cause is the piriformis muscle impinging on the sciatic nerve. One would think this is amazing news to physicians who would embrace these new findings and could prevent hundreds of thousands unnecessary surgeries; however, the test has yet to be adopted.
The Solution
If you accept the premise that the cause of sciatica is the piriformis impinging on the sciatic nerve, let's discuss how to resolve the cause and symptoms. The piriformis muscle strains because the other muscles that work in conjunction with it weaken first. This causes the piriformis to try to compensate. From over compensating, it strains and thickens impinging on the sciatic nerve, thus creating the symptoms.
The solution is to strengthen the muscles that work in conjunction with the piriformis to prevent the piriformis from overworking and straining. These muscles include the glutes, hamstrings and hip abductors. To make understanding how to perform these exercises very easy and understandable, I created downloadable videos that can be obtained on my website, www.mitchellyass.com. Success in resolving sciatica should be achievable in just a couple of weeks if the exercises are performed correctly.
If you are tired of taking medications for sciatica with no reduction in symptoms, I suggest you begin to understand why medication does not work. If you are one of the unfortunate individuals who had surgery for sciatica and you still have the symptoms or they are worse, I suggest you begin to understand why the surgery did not help. The reason is simple, these strategies did not address the true cause of sciatica. I have proven that my method does resolve it and does so in a fairly short period of time.
